Philips to boost Asian sales

Philips to boost Asian sales

SINGAPORE (AFP): Philips Consumer Electronics aims to increase
its market share in Asia Pacific by investing heavily in its
brand image and introducing new products faster in the region.

Frans van Houten, managing director of Philips in Singapore,
said in an interview with the Business Times published Monday
that the company was planning to increase its share to about 10
to 15 percent from below 10 percent level currently.

"One of our aims is to bring our share of the consumer
electronics market in the Asia Pacific to the same level as we
have globally, at least to among the top three market positions
with an average market share of 10 to 15 percent," he said.

"Although we're doing quite well in the areas of digital video
disc players and computer monitors, we still have significant
improvements to make," he said.

The managing director said its market share currently stood
around 15 percent in the United States and Europe.

He said Philips would be launching new products, such as
compact disc players with recording capabilities, in the region
in the new millennium.